Russia says it arrested Swedish citizen over alleged military-target attack plot

Russia's Federal Security Service said on October 15 that it had arrested a Swedish citizen in the country's northwestern Pskov region who allegedly planned attacks on Russian military facilities. Xinhua and Chinese business outlets reported the agency's announcement. According to the agency's account, the person had crossed into Russia illegally and used an intention to join Russia's armed forces as a pretext for entering the country. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]

The security agency alleged that the detained person had served between February and June in a unit designated by Russia as a terrorist organization. The reports also said documents showed the person had joined Ukraine's armed forces and participated in fighting against Russia. Those statements formed part of the account presented in coverage of the agency's announcement; the supplied reports did not include a response from the detained person or a separate assessment of the allegations. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]

Russian authorities had opened criminal proceedings against the Swedish citizen under Russia's criminal code, the reports said. The allegation concerned an intention to attack military facilities after entry into Russia, rather than a reported completed attack. CLS and Jiemian attributed their accounts to CCTV News, while Xinhua published its own report from Moscow. All three described the same arrest in Pskov region and repeated the security agency's account of the alleged purpose of the border crossing. The supplied coverage did not independently establish whether the alleged plot or the account of the person's military service was accurate. [ 2 , 3 , 4 ]